If You Have to Leave
by Nova-chan
Summary: Xelloss has aggravated Filia to the near-breaking point. When she smashes a mysterious vase, will it spell romance or disaster for the two? This chapter, Filia leaves her home town for good.
1. I'm So Tired of Being Here

Kawaii Konversations:  
  
NoV: It's been a while, ne?  
  
Zelgadis: Oh, but it could be longer.  
  
NoV: Nope! I owe this to the fans!  
  
(crickets chirp)  
  
Bisho: What fans?  
  
NoV: -.-0 (sigh) Just go back to the closet where you belong. Stop vexing me!  
  
Bisho: Closet!!!! (jumps into the closet)  
  
Lina: What's this fic about anyway?  
  
NoV: I dunno yet.....something that should punish Xelloss, though. (glare)  
  
Xelloss: (innocently) What? Me? Why should you wish to punish me?  
  
NoV: Why don't you ask Filia? (gestures toward the corner)  
  
Filia: (rocking back and forth, holding her knees) Dragonfly.....dragonfly......dragonfly......dragonfly..... .  
  
Xelloss: Can I help it if I know when to execute a neat punchline?  
  
NoV: Well, you should have thought before you included-- (is interrupted)  
  
Phibby: Nova-chan!! Have you forgotten our contract?? (shoves a piece of paper in NoV's face) All before-fic/after-fic/intermission occurrences are to furthermore be held in Cutie Corner, unless one of those withholding signatures becomes deceased naturally or unnaturally. And where are we??? This certainly isn't MY room!!  
  
NoV: (sigh) Phibby, honey.....your room was bothering Xelloss and Bisho.  
  
Phibby: What?? Why?  
  
Xelloss: Too much pink!  
  
Bisho: Too much plush!! I'm allergic!  
  
Gourry: And the kitchen wasn't big enough either!!  
  
Phibby: Oh, come on! You HAVE to honor a contract no matter what!! (poofs everyone to Cutie Corner) Ahhh.....that's more like it! (Settles into a beanbag chair)  
  
NoV: Oh, well. Home, sweet home, I guess. Let's see if we can make a sensical fic.....  
  
--  
  
"Namagomi!!!!" Filia shrieked, running through her house, smashing things here and there with her trusty mace. "I KNOW you're here SOMEWHERE!! Show yourself, you coward!!!"  
  
Zelgadis and a bewildered Gourry sat calmly on Filia's couch in the living room, avoiding the destruction in the dragon's wake.  
  
"Miss Filia, please!!" Amelia was shouting in an attempt to calm the annihilative blond. "This is your home!! Your novelty shop! You don't want to destroy all that you've worked to put together, do you??"  
  
"XELLOSS!!!" she screamed, literally breathing fire.  
  
Lina kept herself busy, eating.....err, protecting the food Filia had prepared.  
  
Just as Filia was about to knock over a vase with her massive tail, Xelloss appeared on top of it, holding her precious egg.  
  
"Oh, look!" he exclaimed, holding out the egg to her. "Valgaav is feeling much better now! How he loves spending time with his Uncle Xelloss!"  
  
Filia silently took the egg from him and handed it to Amelia, who, sensing what was about to happen, ran for the door.  
  
Filia lowered her deadly gaze to the offending mazoku, and held her mace high over her head, intending to bludgeon him to death with it. To her dismay, Xelloss made his getaway just as her weapon was about to make contact. Instead, she smashed the vase he had perched upon.  
  
She noticed, cocking her head to the side, that a little cloud of dust arose from the vase. Filia sneezed when she inhaled some of it. "That's funny," she muttered. "I don't remember seeing this vase before." She examined a shattered remnant, not recognizing the design.  
  
Xelloss reappeared in front of her, grinning. "That was fun! Let's do it again!"  
  
Filia instantly forgot what she was doing and glomped onto his leg, which was dangling over her head. "Oh, Xelloss! I was so worried!" she cried out. "Don't ever leave me again!!"  
  
Xelloss blanched. "You're scaaaaaaring me," he said, in a haunted tone, trying to shake his leg free.  
  
"Let's go and have some tea!" she suggested, pulling him along toward the kitchen. "Just the TWO of us!"  
  
"Filia!" he cried, genuinely frightened. "Snap out of it! Let go of my leg!! Help!!"  
  
Lina and her sidekicks who had been watching the scene from the sidelines were at a loss for comprehension.  
  
"Did Filia just—"Lina began.  
  
"—with Mr. Xelloss—"Amelia continued.  
  
"—'Don't ever leave me again'??" Zelgadis repeated.  
  
(Grumble) "I'm hungry," Gourry whined.  
  
--  
  
Cutie Corner  
  
--  
  
Xelloss: That's unfair!! How could you do this to me??  
  
Filia: Hey! Just think about WHO it's unfair to!! I'm the one who's gone crazy!  
  
NoV: Not crazy! Just stupefied!!  
  
Filia: YOU probably put that vase there with that stupefying dust in it, you monster!!  
  
Xelloss: Why would I WANT you to fall in love with me?  
  
Filia: In LOVE??? Grrrr.....(tail pops out)  
  
Xelloss: (ducks the mace) Hey, I can't help it if I'm irresistible!   
  
NoV: Well, what do you guys want to see in the next chapter? This one's short because it's just the intro-thingie. So, tell me what you want to see in future chapters! Nova-chan's back, baby!! 


	2. Suppressed by all my Childhood Fears

Cutie Corner:  
  
NoV: I've decided to make this into a veeeeery long story. So, fasten your seatbelts, it's going to be an unusually long ride, with your suggestions working into the plot the whole way!  
  
Xelloss: Why punish us this way?? You could've taken any old story and made it long! But, no, you chose THIS one.....  
  
Filia: For once, I agree! How can you torture ME like this??? I didn't even do anything to invoke your anger and revenge!  
  
NoV: Sorry, but you two have no say in this, whatsoeva!  
  
Phibby: 'Eva?  
  
NoV: I'm trying to incorporate some gangsta' lingo into my.....lingo.  
  
Lina: How brilliant you are.....  
  
NoV: You're just upset because this fic doesn't revolve around you.  
  
Lina: Do ANY of them?  
  
NoV: 'The Bigger They Are' did.....  
  
Lina: OH, yeah. Like I WANTED to be in that one.....  
  
NoV: Well, here's part two, minna!!  
  
--  
  
Lina's head, followed by three others, peeked around the corner into the kitchen. A dumbfounded Xelloss sat at the table, a steaming cup of tea in front of him. Filia was cheerfully flitting around the kitchen, trying to find the beginnings of a pie.  
  
"Oh, you'll just LOVE my strawberry pie!" she exclaimed, cutting strawberries into thin slices. "It's to DIE for!"  
  
Xelloss thought to himself, 'So, that's her game......trying to poison me.....that's pathetic....oh, god! I don't want to die!' He abruptly began to float away from the table, saying, "Well, Filia, thanks for the tea, but I'm afraid I must get going!! Don't worry, though! I'll be back when you're feeling....less weird and scary! Bye!" He disappeared.  
  
Filia suddenly jerked out of her trance, nearly cutting off a part of her thumb with the knife. "Wh-what am I doing? Strawberry pie, what?" she wondered, incredulously of her remaining guests.  
  
Lina cautiously approached her, not wanting to be the dragon's next "victim." Eyebrow raised in skepticism, she queried, "Filia? You feeling okay? Do you want to lie down?"  
  
Filia's eyebrows knitted in their own skepticism. "What are you talking about, Lina-san?"  
  
"You were hugging and catering to XELLOSS!" Lina exclaimed. "There's something WRONG with that picture!!"  
  
Filia gaped at Lina. "I was doing WHAT with WHO??" She laughed, trying to suppress her friends' suspicions, as well as her own growing panic. "WHY would I do that??"  
  
"It started as soon as you broke that vase," Zelgadis remarked.  
  
"Well," Amelia said, excitedly, taking Filia's delicate hands in hers, ignoring Zelgadis' observation, "I think it's just wonderful that you can finally admit your deeply-hidden feelings for Mr. Xelloss! I had my own notions that you two were in love, and I think that you're very brave to take the first step, Miss Filia!"  
  
"Um.....Amelia-san," Filia murmured, taking back her hands, "I don't know why you all keep telling me that I did these things, since I'm certain that I never did!" She had to take a stand, or there was no telling what they would think of her! "Now, I'm very glad you all stopped in for lunch, and it's good to see you, but I have very important things to do today, so good evening to all of you!" And, with that, she made a run for the stairs and into the bathroom, slamming doors and knocking over trinkets the whole way.  
  
"Does this mean we don't get to stay for dinner?" Gourry asked the puzzled people around him.  
  
--  
  
Filia slumped into the bath water, submersing herself up to her nose. It was simply ridiculous that they even had the gall to make up demented stories like that! And about XELLOSS?? Why involve that evil little jerk? And these people were supposed to be her friends!  
  
An even more pressing question might have been: why didn't she remember anything after she broke the vase? Or why was she suddenly in the kitchen slicing strawberries? Or why did she had a shred of a foggy memory about pouring Xelloss a cup of orange tea? Well, these would have been high- priority questions had she even halfway believed that outrageous story, which she did not.  
  
There could have been nothing in the world more soothing than this bath, she decided. It was bubbly and fragrant and so warm that she never wanted to get out and go back into the world.  
  
She grinned at the egg sitting beside her on the sink. "After this, you and I are going to have a nice long nap," she said, decidedly.  
  
Filia sank even deeper into the water, blowing bubbles with her nose. She was completely relaxed and content until a black spider crawled into her line of sight. She jumped straight out of the water and out of the tub, grabbing a towel, and shrieking in terror.  
  
"Oh my gods, oh my gods, oh my gods," she chanted, backing against the wall. "It's a spider."  
  
She was weighing whether to throw something at it, or simply vacate the room, and hope to the gods that it didn't lay eggs when Xelloss appeared in front of her.  
  
Xelloss, having recovered from the first incident of the day, was hoping to make a meal off of both Filia's fear and her outrage at having a monster visit her when she was in her bathroom. He simply flicked the offending insect with a bite-sized piece of black mazoku energy and washed his hands of that ordeal.  
  
He turned to face Filia, saying, "Miss me?" when she precipitately grabbed him around the waist.  
  
"Yes, I did, Master Xelloss!" she declared. "Please don't leave me!"  
  
Xelloss thought, What?? This again??, but said, "Oh, not to worry, Filia- chan, I'm always just a call away!" That's when he noticed what she was wearing. A towel.  
  
He blanched. "Filia....." he said, as she tightened her grip. "Filia," he said more forcefully when she looked up at him with her big azure eyes. "Filia!" he was shouting when the towel fell off partway.  
  
She blinked. "Xelloss...." she whispered into his ear.  
  
Xelloss phased out and appeared in a less compromising position. "I hate to keep running out on you, Filia-dear, but I think I hear my master calling!!! Gotta go!" He had disappeared again.  
  
--  
  
NoV: YAI!! Chapter three!! I mean two....  
  
Zelgadis: You're going crazy.  
  
NoV: Oh well!  
  
Gourry: YAY!  
  
NoV: Anyway, stayed tuned for chapter 4...I mean three!!! 


	3. And if you Have to Leave

NoV: Argh!! I can't believe the chapters got switched like that! (smacks her head into a wall)  
  
Amelia: Yes, but it's no excuse to go on a rampage of self-mutilation!  
  
NoV: Anyway, I guess by now, you guys have figured out that the chapters are subsequent lyrics from the Evanescence song My Immortal. Isn't Evanescence the greatest?? (glares at Evvy haters) But, anyway, here's part three before anyone else interrupts—  
  
Gourry: WAAAAAIIITTT!!  
  
NoV: -.-0 On with part three, I say!!  
  
--  
  
Filia blinked in confusion. What had just happened? She was taking a bath, saw a spider, got out of the bath.....and then? It was as if she had blacked out for a few minutes. Like a greater force had kicked her out of her own head.  
  
Suddenly, she remembered purple. Purple and black. Whispering something into someone's ear.  
  
"Wait!" she said aloud, upon sudden realization. "Wasn't Xelloss just here? And I'm only wearing a towel?? No....that can't be right!" she decided. "I must really be sick!" She reached into her medicine cabinet for the thermometer. She placed the instrument under her tongue and began to pace while she waited for the results.  
  
Maybe she was having an allergic reaction to that dust she had inhaled. That seemed logical enough. Hallucinations could very easily be a part of an allergic reaction. There was certainly no way that she could ever feel genial toward that repulsive monster.  
  
BEEP, BEEP.  
  
She checked the thermometer. "Normal, huh?" She sighed. "Maybe I should just go and lie down." She scooped up Valgaav's egg and walked carefully to her bedroom, hoping she wouldn't blackout on the way.  
  
At last, she made it to her bed. She placed the egg on a pillow and sank into the feathery texture of her bed, falling instantly into sleep's warm grip.  
  
--  
  
Filia pounded the dough into a flat spread and stuck her cookie cutter into it, yielding a heart-shaped cookie, ready for baking. Once she had used up all the dough, she put all of the tan-colored hearts on the cookie sheet and into her modest oven.  
  
She leaned against the counter and sighed, wiping off a sheen of sweat from her forehead. She couldn't believe she was getting overheated already. She hadn't even begun to bake today!  
  
Suddenly, a presence loomed behind her. She knew who it was, and turned around to greet him. "Xelloss-sama!" she exclaimed, pulling him down from his floating position to the floor. She squeezed tightly around his shoulders and said, "I'm baking you some cookies! They should be done anytime now!" He smiled affably. Filia's eyes welled up with blissful tears. "Oh, Xelloss! Let's get married!!"  
  
"Yes!" he agreed, vigorously. "We must join in union that which has been forced apart by customs and traditions! We must do it immediately! I know a wonderful preacher."  
  
She nearly burst with euphoria. "And let's have a dozen children!"  
  
"No, we should have two dozen!" he argued. "That's two litters! Oh, we can teach them all the things to know about being demons!"  
  
"That sounds like a dream come true!" she consented, giggling happily..  
  
--  
  
Filia jerked out of her bed, screaming and pulling at her hair. "NO! NO!!! I won't let you teach my children any demon rituals!!!!" She took in the room for the first time. "Oh, heavens," she murmured, seeing only Val's silent egg, staring at her and probably raising its invisible eyebrow. "Why did I have to have such a HORRIBLE NIGHTMARE??" she wailed.  
  
Feeling unmistakably puny and out of sorts, the priestess fumbled with her cloak, trying to rid herself of the excess weight. She didn't realize what she was doing until she walked right into the bedpost and banged her knee against it. She cursed and fumed at the devious post which had cruelly taken advantage of her weakened state.  
  
She sighed a grief-stricken sigh. "I'm going to have to visit the Elders," she said, decidedly. "They will surely know a solution to this problem." She fastened her cloak back into place. "I can't trust myself without their guidance anymore."  
  
She scooped up her adored egg, grabbed her herb-filled satchel, and left her home, in hopes that she would find a cure for this condition.  
  
On an afterthought, she hurried back inside her house, and took a sample of the smashed urn that she had yet to clean up.  
  
"This may be useful," she resolved.  
  
--  
  
NoV: This was hard for me to write for some reason....oh, well! Next time, Filia goes to visit the Elders who tell her the shocking truth, which is--- bwahaha! You have to read the next chapter for such info, you sillies! 


	4. I Wish That You Would Just Leave

NoV: Part three, part three! (dances)  
  
Lina: NoV.....it's part four....  
  
NoV: (stops dancing) I knew that....you guys KNOW I'm not going crazy....right??  
  
Xelloss: You're doing a serious, non-humorous me-X-Filia fic.....  
  
NoV: Oh, please! Tons of sane people do those!  
  
Zelgadis: Maybe you should go see Nahga......and take me with you! I have a free session coming to me, you know!  
  
NoV: Yeah, well.....on with the ficcie!!  
  
--  
  
Quote of the day:  
  
NoV: (driving, pulls up beside some construction workers, who stare at her) Kimi.....lock the doors!  
  
Kimi: (goes to lock the car doors, which make a loud noise)  
  
NoV: DISCREETLY!!! (doors are locked, causing the construction workers to stare even more) Oh, well, as long as the doors are locked, I don't care.  
  
--  
  
Filia walked down the busy street, melding into her surroundings. She passed by several shops, not unlike her own, with vendors selling ceramics and tea pots. Children chased each other, pretending to be fighting demons and hobgoblins. Men and women went about their busy lives, trying to keep track of their children and schedules.  
  
Filia, her cherished egg nestled in the crook of her arm, smiled to herself at the peace of this city that she lived in.  
  
She marched past dwellings, blacksmiths, welders, and healers until she finally arrived at the temple at the center of the community. It was a large, ethereal building, flying buttresses surrounding high steeples. Stained glass windows that started at eye level and went all the way up to the very tall towers glinted and shimmered with the light of the setting sun.  
  
Filia pushed open the doors to the breathtaking building, letting light into the otherwise dimly-lit foyer. She made her way past healing rooms and private offices to the main hallway where the Council of Elders would be. Filia, having been a priestess all of her life, knew that around this time everyday, the Elders would have executed all of their meetings for the day, and would be using this time to counsel those who sought their leadership.  
  
Another priestess that Filia recognized stood at the doors to the Council's chambers. "Hello, Filia," the girl named Cecile greeted her. She was not the brightest priestess in the temple, but was renowned for her special healing techniques for burns. Her shoulder-length blonde hair swayed when she talked. "Are you here to deliver a message to the Elders?"  
  
"No," Filia responded, with a shake of her head. "I'm actually here today for the guidance of the Elders."  
  
"Oh, I see," Cecile said, with a touch of antipathy. "Well, they are actually with someone right now, but I will let you know when they are ready to see you." The shorter blonde sniffed and returned to her post, guarding the door.  
  
Filia, taken aback by the rude behavior of her fellow priestess, sat down some distance away on a carved oaken bench. She pulled her knitting needles out of her traveling bag that she was very glad to have remembered and began to crochet a sweater for Val while she waited.  
  
A seemingly long time later, the doors to the main hallway were opened and a young dragon man stalked out of the room. "Thank you," he said to Cecile, as he passed her on his way out.  
  
Cecile nodded to him and entered the hallway, announcing Filia's visit. She then returned and motioned to Filia that it was okay to go in.  
  
Filia walked across the pearl-colored tiles as she had done many times, approaching the table that seated her Elders.  
  
There were six of the golden dragons patriarchs present. All of them had long grey beards and a mane of grey hair falling down their backs. They wore traditional robes, white with the trim that suited them and matched their characteristics; i.e., green trim might show that the particular Elder was best known for his prowess for healing.  
  
"Welcome, Filia," the Elder sitting on the outermost left side acknowledged her when she was a few feet away from their table. "What problem are you facing today?"  
  
"Elders," she said, proficiently, giving them all a brief bow, "I am challenged by a problem that I would wish to speak in private to one of you about."  
  
The Elder on the middle left stood up. He was the Elder named Taro Roth, and was the youngest member of the council, although he was over four thousand years old. He specialized in matters of elocution and communication. He was very passionate about his position, and always worked his hardest to solve any problem that was presented to him. His robe was trimmed in red and brown. The red was to symbolize his enthusiasm for his disposition and the brown represented his ability to connect with the public and its many problems.  
  
"Fellow Elders," Taro Roth said, his thunderous voice echoing across the room, "if all of you give me your consent, I will address this problem in my private office."  
  
The other Elders nodded at one another in agreement. The one on the left, who had initially greeted Filia said, "You have the permission of the council to take your problem to Taro Roth in private, Filia."  
  
"Thank you," she said.  
  
Taro Roth motioned for her to follow him through a side door. Filia bowed to the remaining Elders and followed the youngest into an adjoining corridor. Neither of them spoke as they wove a path through halls and doors, relics from the past decorating the walls.  
  
Finally, they arrived at a door with Taro Roth's symbol adorning it. The youngish Elder unlocked his door with a very ancient-looking key and opened it wide, allowing Filia to enter first. Inside the room, she saw what lay inside most of the other Elders' rooms: a meager desk with one chair behind it and one in front of it, a bookshelf with books containing long-forgotten spells and healing methods, a rug hanging on the wall, emblazoned with a symbol of Ceiphied, and a stack of trivial maps with detailed summaries of the ancient land that once lay in the center of this town.  
  
Taro Roth closed the door behind him and seated himself at his desk across from Filia. "Please be seated," he encouraged her. Once she had sat down, he said, "Filia Ul Copt. One of the shrine's greatest priestesses. What is burdening you today, my child?"  
  
Filia finally relaxed and set down her egg and satchel on the floor. "Great Elder," she began, "something is greatly wrong with me. Something is happening in my body that I can't control."  
  
He nodded politely. "What is happening?"  
  
"I think I am losing control of my mind," she said, weakly. "I black out often and wake up later with hardly any memories of what has happened. So far, the only memories I have retained were very foggy to me." She blushed, thinking back to what those memories were of. "I was hoping you could tell me what to do to break this spell," she practically begged.  
  
Taro Roth rubbed his beard, intellectually. "I see," he said. "So, you know that it was caused by a spell?"  
  
"Well, actually," Filia murmured, rummaging through her bag and producing a piece of the vase, "it all started when I broke this pot. I inhaled some dust that must have been sitting in the bottom." She handed him the shard.  
  
He carefully studied the remainder of what could have been the ideal vase for one of Filia's customers. He was puzzled by the design. It almost looked like a primitive kind of writing. "I'll have to consult one of these old books," he said, going over to his dusty bookshelf. "Maybe the answer will be in one of these."  
  
Filia sat, hopefully, patiently waiting to see if her respected Elder could solve her growing dilemma. Taro Roth mulled over book after grimy book until he finally found something that looked promising.  
  
"Filia, come here," he beckoned, his finger resting at the top of a page in the middle of a faded greying book. She scurried over to his side and looked where he was pointing. "See this?" he asked, pointing at a picture under a barrage of text. "This is the same pattern as the one on the pot."  
  
Filia nodded, looking from one to the other. "Exactly the same!" she agreed. "Does the book tell anything about it?"  
  
Taro Roth read over the description a few times. "Your pot was made by an ancient race whose sole purpose was to make people fall in love. Because of this, they came to be known as Cupids, although they were actually an isolated group of sprites. It says that these elven creatures actually succeeded in creating several various level love potions and hid them in their clay pots for centuries in caves and underground tunnels. However, it says that after the last of them died out, their potions became just as much of a fable as they did, and it was a slim to none chance that any of these love elixirs existed anymore."  
  
Filia sighed, the weight of the world crashing down on her. "Does that mean I'm going to be lovesick for.....someone forever??" she cried.  
  
He continued to read. "It goes on to say that most of the potions, although powerfully effective, only had a temporary effect, nearly all of them lasting for only a week, depending on the person and the amount ingested. So, it should only be a few days, give or take." He looked at Filia, half- smiling. "I'm certain that you'll be able to live with it for that long, right?"  
  
Filia blanched, partially relieved, and partially uneasy. She answered him, "I'll just have to make do for now, I guess." She gathered up the few things she had brought with her. "Thank you, Elder, for your help," she said with a pleasant smile. "Hopefully the next time I come to you, it will be under better circumstances." She turned to leave.  
  
"Oh, Filia, wait," he halted her. She turned around. "Take the book with you. You may need it." She took the proffered book. "Bring it back to me when this whole predicament is over and forgotten."  
  
She smiled again. "Thank you."  
  
--  
  
NoV: Whew! That was a toughie. But, I did finish it in one day.....do you guys feel like it's becoming an A/U?  
  
Xelloss: Taro Roth? (snicker)  
  
Filia: I think it was.....a nice attempt at recreating a dragon culture....  
  
NoV: Filia, when you lie, you twitch.  
  
Filia: (twitching) I do not!  
  
NoV: Well, this part was probably kinda boring, and the next one probably will be too, but fear not! The one after that will definitely be action- filled!!....I think? It depends on which chapter this is....is this five? ....or six? 


	5. Cause Your Presence Still Lingers Here

NoV: This chapter is dedicated to Teefa85 who always believed in me and stuck by me no matter what!!

Zelgadis: Gee, what an honor.

NoV: (glare) Anyway, you were all probably wondering why it took me so long to get this chapter up—

Zelgadis: Nope.

NoV: (ignoring him) It's actually a funny story! You see, I started school this week....(dies) And I had so much to read and write in biology!!!!!! (dies again)

Xelloss: (floating upside-down) How was that a funny story?

NoV: Not funny as in "Heehee," by funny as in, "Oh, goodness..."

Xelloss: Nope. It wasn't funny by any definition of the word.

NoV: (sigh) Anyway, here's part five for your enjoyment!

Lina: I'm impressed! You called it the right part this time.

NoV: Although....

Lina: What?

NoV: It's only chapter four. The first part was the prologue.....

Lina: .....

NoV: But, it's not like it matters or anything!

Lina: Oh, no. Of course not....-.-0

NoV: -.- Without further ado—

--

Quote of the chapter:

James: (Screaming at a hobo from his car window) DO A LITTLE DANCE! MAKE A LITTLE LOVE!!

Hobo: What the f---??

--

Finally making it into her cozy bedroom as the sun was beginning to set, Filia collapsed onto her sympathetic bed, the stresses of the day immediately weighing down on her. She rolled onto her back, staring at the designs in the ceiling. Normally, she would only see uninspired patterns, but for some reason, she was beginning to see objects. One corner of the ceiling looked exactly like a somewhat distorted shoe. To her left, she could see the outline of an owl or some other similarly shaped bird. There was a teacup dangling over her feet, and a cone hovering above her head.....!!

Filia would have sat up, but calmed herself when she realized that the culprit cone was merely another design bathed in shadow. And, yet, there it was, as plain as day, fluttering overhead as if taunting her.....reminding her of what she had lost control over. The cruel, three-dimensional pattern popped out of the ceiling more so than any of the other less crude designs.

Sighing and tasting a defeat delicacy, she rolled over onto her stomach, and prayed her more earnest prayer that she would wake up and find out that the whole day had been a disturbing nightmare.

--

At that moment, the real cone himself was floating around in the astral plane, resting and reflecting on his venturesome day. What a character that Filia was! What exactly had gotten into her? She had taken all the fun out of teasing her by acting so....frisky. Didn't she understand the god-awful feeling her new lovey-dovey nature caused in the pit of his stomach?

"Xelloss!" a voice boomed inside his "head." "You will see me now."

The cone immediately disappeared, and Xelloss appeared in his human form before his master on Wolfpack Island.

"Yes?" he wondered of her. "What did you need?"

Zelas crossed one tanned leg over the other, taking a swig of her blood-red wine. "What's the matter, Xelloss?" she asked, with all the sympathy and motherly stature she could conjure. "You seem distracted. I noticed that you've neglected to kill anything today."

Xelloss mentally sighed. He should have known he couldn't keep anything from her forever. "Oh, I'm sure that it's nothing!" he lied. "If it makes you feel better, I'll go kill someone right now!"

"Is it that dragon girl?" Zelas wondered. "Is she causing you to be out of sorts?"

Xelloss blanched. Yep, she was reading his mind again. Darn those metaphysical powers of hers! "Well, you might say that," he said, softly, studying his feet. "She's acting very peculiar....."

"Lovestruck, I know," she murmured. The greater beastmaster pushed a golden lock behind her ear. "But, I say, when life hands you dirt, grow yourself a garden!"

Xelloss' interest was perked. "What are you proposing, Zelas-sama?"

Zelas smiled her most feral grin. "I've never changed a dragon into a mazoku. I hear the results are quite.....spectacular."

--

NoV: Short, I know, but there wasn't much I wanted to cover in this chapter.

Amelia: (Sigh) At least I'm being spared from having to be in this fic.

NoV: -.-0 You guys all make me feel sooooo confident.


	6. And It Won't Leave Me Alone

NoV: (panting) Oh-kay, I started writing this one just as soon as I uploaded the last one, so maybe it'll be up quicker.....I hope.

Lina: I convinced Nahga to make a house call. She should be here anytime.

NoV: You WHAT??

Lina: I told you that you needed to talk to her about your "issues," so that's what you're gonna do. Oh, and by the way, it's a hundred bucks a pop.

NoV: A pop? Whaddyou mean "a pop"?

Lina: -.- I mean $100 per session.

NoV: Oh....hey, geez, Lina! Where am I gonna get that kind of money?? I'm a fanfic writer for cryin' out loud!!

Lina: Not my problem.

Zelgadis: She still owes me a session. And I'm going to finally get it!!

NoV: Hmm....that gives me an idea.

--

Quote of the chapter:

NoV: I command you to eat that burro!! BWAHAHA!!!

--

The next day, Filia was walking down a dirt road that connected her home town to the next, in which she bought her sewing supplies. She had decided that in order to get her mind off of _certain things, _she would have to do something to occupy her spare time. And, whenever Val was reborn (again), he would need clothes.

So, her mind filled with footie pajamas and palm-sized shoes, she walked merrily down the path, her egg tucked into a wicker basket, never knowing the danger that lurked just ahead.

The moment she passed by a clump of trees in a dense area of the forest, she heard the rustling of leaves and footsteps. Filia gasped when she suddenly found herself surrounded by whom she perceived to be bandits, dressed in black from head to toe.

"You're a golden dragon, aren't you, lady?" one of them asked, stepping forward, presumably the leader.

"Why.....yes, I am," she answered, hoping that they were merely lost travelers. "If you're looking for the golden dragon city, it's about half a mile that way." She pointed over her shoulder.

The confident one chuckled. "Oh, we've already found what we're looking for," he said, grinning venomously. "You see, we're followers of the Great Tyrra, and He has sent us a divine message to sacrifice a golden dragon in His honor." He began to move in on a confused Filia, as did the rest of his gang.

Filia had had enough of these crackpots and their stupid "god" when they began to chant a hymn of praise to the "Great Tyrra." She raised a hand to the orb holding her cloak together and began to transform.

Before she could complete her metamorphosis, however, she was knocked forward by a blast of magic, undoubtedly from one of the thugs behind her. It was so fast, she was on her face before she ever felt the blow to her back. As she lay on the ground, she felt a stinging sensation where she had been hit.

The priestess slowly rose to her feet, gasping for the air that she had recently lost. Just as she was about to blast them all to kingdom come with her laser breath, they hit her all at once with a great barrage of attacks. Some of the hits made her skin pinch and sting, while others seemed to burn right through her skin. Filia was lost in a sea of anguish and color. She could hardly tell whether she was standing or laying on the ground. The world around her was moving and so was she.

And then, suddenly, she knew she was on the ground, because she could feel her body hitting it. Delusional, she looked around to see what had become of her basket, but it was nowhere in sight.

Though the poor priestess was rolling in and out of consciousness, still the attacks upon her continued.

--

Xelloss' instructions had been simple and open to interpretation: See if the dragon girl would like to join us for some fun this evening. He knew fully what his master's intentions were. He was no fool. Also, he wasn't senseless enough to go against her orders. If the dragon girl she wanted, the dragon girl she got.

Although, she did only tell him to see if Filia _wanted_ to come with him.....

Once he searched for a brief moment for Filia's life signature, he materialized in the air a few dozen feet above where she would be.

Xelloss' eyes opened with bafflement, and then anger. Those stupid bandits _dare _attack _his _plaything? Not today!

The gang of Tyrra worshipers couldn't even utter a prayer to their "god" before they were all swept away by a mighty wave of black, leaving only a crumpled Filia in their place.

Xelloss reappeared standing beside Filia's lifeless body. He bent beside her and rolled her onto her side. "Filia?" he wondered, staring at her beautiful face, scrunched in pain.

Resolution written across his face, the mazoku picked her up into his arms. Filia lolled her head toward him, moaning in agony. She opened her once bright blue eyes, now a dull grey caused by a dull pain pulsing through her body. Xelloss thought he saw a faint flicker of light shoot across her sedated eyes when she said, "Xel....loss....where's.....my basket?"

"What basket, Filia?" he asked her, trying to decide if he should take her to be healed, or look for something that may have been conceived by her delusional mind.

"Where....is it?" she asked, her eyes glazing over feverishly. "You have to.....find it.....Val....."

Xelloss, hoping he wouldn't regret doing so later, walked to the edge of the road and peered into a ditch, searching for her lost basket. "I don't see it, Filia," he told her, wondering if she could even hear him.

"I dropped it," she said.

He walked to the other side of the road. "Are you sure you had it with you?" he asked.

She didn't answer. Her eyes still open, she took in a ragged breath and stared into nothingness.

Xelloss nearly panicked. Had Val's egg been in the basket? Surely, that would cause her to worry so about it. At least she had gotten over being so playful toward him. Of course, that could have to do with the fact that she was slowly dying in his arms.

He was running out of time. He had to get her to her shrine quick before she was too far gone! But, if she did recover, she'd never forgive him for leaving Val's egg out in the middle of nowhere.

Then, suddenly, as if the gods chose to solve his dilemma, he spotted the basket. It blended in with a shrub very well, looking like a stick or piece of stripped bark from a neighboring tree. Xelloss grasped the handle with one hand, balancing Filia with one arm, and pulled the basket free. Inside, he saw knitting needles, a brooch, a ball of string, and the egg, all intact.

Sighing with relief, Xelloss teleported into the city.

--

Filia: MORE A/U?? Who, may I ask, is Tyrra?

NoV: I'm sorry, I'm sorry! That town that hated dragons didn't have a name.....not that I know of anyway....and, besides, it got destroyed. I needed it for the plot, guys!!

Xelloss: What was with the part about, 'Oh, my god! Val's egg!'?

NoV: Well, she dropped it, and you can't leave it there....what do you want from me?? I'm trying to make a living here!!

Minna: :p

NoV: -.-0 .... Join us nexties!!


	7. These Wounds Won't Seem to Heal

Nova-chan: Yep, it has taken me an awful long time updating. But, I think that's the mastermind behind success: not getting too bogged down on one subject. Juggling several subjects at once makes all the stories great, and the readers happy.

Xelloss: Or in your case, it make all the stories pointless and all the readers bored. .

Nova-chan: (glare) ANYway....here's part um.....

Lina: Nahga should be here any minute now....

--

Quote of the chapter:

Librarian: What was the file name?

Jennifer: (looks angrily at NoV) "Happy Jen"....

--

Xelloss phased in before the impressive dragon temple. Filia twitched in his arms. He regarded her, cryptically. Over half of her body was scorched or bloody. Her clothes had been ripped to shreds, only bits and pieces still clinging to her skin, pressed into wounds. Her face was bleeding and her eyes were tightly shut, enduring the pain.

He would have to go outside of his normal zone of comfort and enter the dragon shrine. He had to do it to save Filia. After all, it wouldn't do to report back to his master saying that he had allowed her to be killed!

The door creaked open as he slowly pushed it inward, balancing Filia and her precious basket with a steady arm. Xelloss was faced with faraway glows and hushed hallways. Not exactly a very welcoming place. In fact, the whole air of "goody-goodness" that the temple gave off was starting to give him a headache.

A moan from the girl he carried reminded him of the urgency of his visit. He rushed down the silent halls until he came across a young girl huddled into a corner. She was apparently trying to hide herself from the danger of an unwelcome mazoku visitor. A stream of tears spilled down her face when she realized that she had been spotted.

She decided to gather up her courage when she saw the limp form of a fellow priestess in the murderer's arms. "Wh-what are you doing here??" she demanded, hoping that he voice wasn't shaking. "What are y-you doing with Filia?"

"Who are you?" Xelloss wanted to know, ignoring her questions. "Are you a priestess? A healer?"

The girl was taken aback. "Uhhh....I-I'm Cecile," she finally replied. "Yes, I'm a priestess and healer."

Xelloss was relieved to have found this girl. She could help Filia. And he could take her to his Master.....he did still want to do that, right? "She's been hurt badly. You have to help her." He was holding Filia out toward her, as if Cecile would carry her away.

"Come with me," Cecile said, turning her back to him and walking down the corridor. Why did he want her to heal Filia so badly? That monster was obviously the one who had hurt her in the first place! Oh, well. Who knew about mazoku and their wacky agendas? As long as it was for a good cause.

She eventually led Xelloss into a candle-lit room with books lining one wall and a bed set casually on the floor. Xelloss carefully laid Filia on the bed, her eyes twitching as he did so. He would have teleported away for a while, at least until Filia was back on her feet, but something about the temple's white magic was interfering with his black magic. He couldn't reach the astral plane from inside it. He settled for a chair in the corner, instead, his headache increasing with each passing moment.

Cecile seemed very calm about the whole ordeal, as if she had all the time in the world to play around before helping Filia. She slowly searched for certain bottles of serum and books before she was content that she had all the supplies she required.

Xelloss looked on in silent wonder as the less-attractive dragon hovered over Filia, chanting and massaging the serum into her skin. She repeated the same incantations over and over for about ten minutes, before she stood up straight and wiped off her hands with a grey cloth.

Cecile looked toward Xelloss with a calm that made him feel very powerless. "She should be all right after a day of rest. I insist that she stay here for the night," she informed him.

She didn't stick around to hear any arguments, not that he would have given her any, and walked out the door and onto more important things.

Xelloss scooted his chair over beside the bed. Filia looked a lot more peaceful now. Her wounds had lessened and her eyes weren't clenched in pain. She would wake up soon, he knew.

Xelloss groaned as his headache began to blur his vision. Solemnly, he held his head in his hands, as he felt his stomach flip. He needed to lie down and get some rest. After all, he hadn't had a good night's sleep in over three hundred years! He was long overdue. Filia was on her side now, only taking up half of the bed. Oh, what the heck! Who would ever know?

Xelloss climbed in bed beside Filia, hoping that she wouldn't wake up and kill him.

--

NoV: Yai!

Xelloss: That's—

Filia: --wrong....

NoV: Stay tuned!!


	8. This Pain Is Just Too Real

NoV: Yeah!! I'm steadily makin' the updates and doin' the schoolwork! I rock!

Lina: I don't think the fans would agree.

NoV: Well.....I am sorry that this is so late, but I have many school things to do. BIOLOGY!!! AGG IT'S KILLING ME!!

Quote of the Chapter:

Kiwi: I absolutely, positively, 100% and oh-so-certainly, just can't conceive in my tiny mind, that's it's—not monkey.

NoV: AAAHHH!! AGAIN!!

Xelloss opened his eyes to a soft candlelight glow. Thank the gods he wasn't underneath the blaring sun. He still had an _awful_ headache. What had that been caused by again?

And, suddenly he remembered.

He only had to turn over a quarter of the way and he was face-to-face, nose-to-nose with Filia.

_Gods, please don't let her wake up.....just let me get out of the bed....._

Xelloss was slowing sliding off the bed, not wanting to wake her in the process.

But, as cruel as fate is, Filia's eyes fluttered and then opened.

Xelloss froze. His face wasn't touching hers anymore, but it was only a few inches away. And they _were _in bed together.

"Xelloss...." she said, drowsily. Something flickered across her eyes.

Xelloss had a little time to ponder this in her confusion. Was she still under whatever spell she had been under? Was she still madly in love with him? He wasn't sure if he'd rather have her screaming at him or groping him.

Neither choice won when Filia's eyes filled with tears. "Get out," she whispered, closing her eyes tightly, letting the tears fall onto her pillow. She made no move to get up or to shrink away from him. She just lay there.

Xelloss didn't wait around to see what would happen if he tried to talk to her. He walked out the door, remembering that he couldn't teleport inside the temple.

He paid no attention to the priestesses or priests that he passed, knowing that they would only cower or cry out if he did.

Xelloss phased out as soon as he opened the door to the outside.

Back in her lonely room, Filia hugged herself, sobbing. She didn't want to believe what she knew must have happened.

Had she been under the spell and slept with him? In the dragon temple, of all places??

"No," she whispered to herself. "I would never.....never do such a thing....."

Filia tried to remember what had happened. Walking down a path, then people.....weren't they lost? Then.....Xelloss.....and her basket.

There were so many gaps and holes in her memory.

And, now that the spell was broken, she wondered why it was now after she had done the unimaginable instead of before. Why couldn't it have stopped her from doing _that_ with _him_??

Filia never wanted to leave the bed. She just wanted to sleep and sleep.....until she slept away the awful thing she had done.

NoV: Sad, huh? Review!


	9. There's Just Too Much

NoV: Sorry that this is so late!! dies School is evil, and we all know it! But, now, I'm forcing myself to make at least one update a week. If I don't hold true to this, please bother me!!!

"What did I tell you?"

CRACK

He didn't dare groan or express the anguish he felt.

"WHAT did I tell you??"

CRACK

"To.....bring back the dragon girl....."

"Why didn't you?"

SINGE

"She needed to be healed...."

His body was broken and bleeding. Zelas had let him have it when he had returned home "empty-handed." She alternated between her two favorite tools: her cigarette and her bare strength. He knew he deserved it. He should never have let emotion or feeling get in the way of her orders. After all, he wasn't supposed to have either one.

Zelas sneered, left the room without another word.

Xelloss, with his last reserves of stregth, teleported into his dark corner of the island.

"Thank you for helping me," Filia said to Cecile. She couldn't bring herself to look into her fellow priestesses' eyes.

"What happened to you, Fil??" Cecile demanded.

"I don't know....."

Filia left the temple, never to return.

NoV: o.0 What a chapter, huh? Well, I know it's short, but give me a break while I'm trying to get back in the "swing," okay?


	10. That Time Cannot Erase

Filia began to pack all of her important possessions into a small, leather bag. She had started off at a quick pace, wanting to get as far away from her home town as possible. But, soon she found herself looking through her books and mementos. She found her old recipe book, and nearly giggled when she saw the recipe for lamb dragon stew. How did that get in there?

When she found Val's headband from the time when he was like all those other monsters, she let her tears flow freely down her face. How long before she would see him again? Would he remember her? What would he be like, now that he was born again?

She picked up her pink hairbrush and combed it through her long, silky hair. She placed the brush in her bag, renewing her sorrows.

She could never again be with the people she loved. The people she grew up with. Her people.

If they found out what she had done, they would surely exile her anyway.

This whole ordeal was Xelloss' fault. That unspeakable monster! From the day she had been forced to meet him, he had done nothing but harm her and tease her! And now, she had to leave the rest of the dragon people because of his evil! He had better hope that he never got within macing distance of her again.

Finally she had packed everything. She lifted her brown traveling bag onto her shoulder, settled Val's egg into the crook of her arm, and left her humble home. Forever.

Xelloss stared at his abyss-like ceiling. This new feeling he had been experiencing was neither pleasant nor miniscule. It was tearing him apart and it never went away. His heart ached with the pain of knowing that he had disobeyed his master. He had betrayed her.

He rolled over. Was that really the reason he felt this way? Because he had gone agaisnt Zelas' will?

Or was it something more?

NoV: Yes, short again, I know! But, I had three essays this week, so....help me out here. Please don't flame me...0


End file.
